Sunday, 1 July 2018

DR. EMANUEL PAT

DR.
EMANUEL PAT (September 19, 1912-1971)

He was born in Bialystok,
Poland.He received both a secular
Jewish and a general education.He
studied medicine at Warsaw University, and from 1936 until WWII he was a doctor
in a Warsaw children’s hospital on Śliska Street.In September 1939, during the Nazi invasion
of Poland, he left for Vilna, and from there he traveled through the Soviet
Union and Japan before arriving in the United States in September 1940.There he enhanced his medical knowledge.In 1944 he volunteered with the medical corps
of the American army in Europe.He was
among the first Jewish writers to report on the Nazi death camps and to compile
lists of the survivors.From his early
youth he was active in Jewish community political and cultural life, initially
in Poland and later in America.He was
also a popular lecturer, journalist, and speaker.He led self-education circles, seminars,
relaxing camps for children in the organizations “Tsukunft” (Future) and SKIF (Sotsyalistishe
kinder farband, or Socialist children’s union), and in America as a
member of the New York committee of the Bund and in the youth Bund “Tsukunft”
where he worked for a more positive attitude of the Bund toward Jewish
community life in America and for an amicable socialist relationship to the
state of Israel.He wrote about these
matters in the Bundist press, and his articles aroused numerous polemics and
commentary throughout the Jewish world.His
first published word was a piece, “Der linkoln-tunel in nyu-york” (The Lincoln
Tunnel in New York), in Naye
folkstsaytung (New people’s newspaper) in Warsaw (1926).He also wrote for the Bundist and the general
Yiddish and non-Yiddish publications: Naye
folkstsaytung, Kleyne folkstsaytung
(Little people’s newspaper) for which he was for a time secretary of the
editorial board, Vokhnshriftn far
literatur (Weekly writing for literature), Khavershaft (Friendship) of which he was also co-editor, Yugnt-veker (Youth alarm), and Foroys (Onward), among others, in
Warsaw; Tsukunft (Future), Unzer tsayt (Our time), Tog (Day), Tog-morgn-zhurnal (Day-morning journal), Veker (Alarm), Kultur un
dertsiung (Culture and education), Faktn
un meynungen (Facts and opinions), and Yivo-bleter
(Pages from YIVO), among others, in New York; Di goldene keyt (The golden chain), Lebns-fragn (Life issues), and Letste
nayes (Latest news) in Tel Aviv; Unzer
shtime (Our voice) and Folks-gezunt
(People’s health) in Paris; Di prese
(The press) in Buenos Aires; Dorem afrike
(South Africa) in Johannesburg; and Unzer
gedank in Melbourne; among other serials.He also wrote for such English-language serials as: Point of View and The Workmen’s
Circle Call in New York.Some of his
speeches are included in the anthology: Takones
far skif-organizatsyes (Rules for SKIF organizations) (Warsaw, 1937); and Yidn nokh der milkhome (Jews after the
war) (New York, 1942).In book form: Hantbikhl far skif-helfer (Handbook for
SKIF helpers) (Warsaw, 1938), 16 pp.; Yidishe
kinder tsurik tsum lebn (Jewish children back to life) (New York, 1946), 58
pp.; Afn shedveg, haynttsaytike problemen
fun yidishn natsyonaln kiem (At the crossroad, contemporary issues for
Jewish national existence) (Munich, 1947), 16 pp.; Yidn untern ayzernem farhang (Jews behind the Iron Curtain) (New
York, 1949), 51 pp., also appeared in English; Yidn in amerike, organizatsye, institutsyes un problemen (Jews in
America, organizations, institutions, and problems) (New York, 1951), 62 pp.; Briv keyn medines-yisroel (Letters to
the state of Israel) (Tel Aviv, 1955), 186 pp., for which he received the
Surovitch Prizefrom the World Jewish Culture
Congress; Harts-krankheytn, harts-felern,
hoykher blut-druk, di gefar fun harts-atakn (Heart diseases, heart
imperfections, high blood pressure, the danger of heart attacks) (Tel Aviv,
1966), 503 pp.; In gerangl, yankev pat un
zayn dor (In struggle: Yankev Pat and his generation) (New York, 1971), 639
pp.On several occasions he visited
Europe, Latin America, and the state of Israel.He published his articles on medicine in: Tog (Day) and Tog-morgn-zhurnal
in New York.They were written in a
popular style and were widely read among all classes of readers.From 1960 he was chairman of the Workmen’s
Circle Culture House in the Bronx.